


Entre Nous

by JoyfullyyoursDav



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst and Romance, Best Friends, Brother-Sister Relationships, Canon Compliant, Canon Gay Character, Canon Universe, Childhood Friends, Dust (The Adventure Zone), Friendship/Love, Gen, Love Triangles, POV Second Person, Pre-Canon, Secret Crush, Secret Marriage, Short, TAZ dust, Tragic Romance, Unrequited Love, Vampires, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-23
Updated: 2018-03-23
Packaged: 2019-04-06 17:13:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14061591
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JoyfullyyoursDav/pseuds/JoyfullyyoursDav
Summary: Dylan loves Jeremiah, and Jeremiah loves Anne. Dylan bears witness to that love day in and day out, but this day is different. Today, Anne and Jeremiah are getting married.





	Entre Nous

**Author's Note:**

> entre nous: adverb. between ourselves; privately.
> 
> Sorry about the second person POV, I know it's annoying for some. The ghost of Jeremiah Blackwell ripped this one out of me like this and I was powerless to stop it.
> 
> Dylan is a sad, sad boy and will somebody please hug him already :(

There are some things that you know for sure.

You know about sacrifice. Like the way your father worked himself to an early grave to build a life for the family. Like the way your mother grew you and Anne up like a garden, preening and watering but giving you room to stretch toward the sky. At your core, you know that making your family proud is the first thing you ever wanted to do. Being a successful Mathis is the only thing you wanted to grow up to be.

And you know about love. About how it shapes you, takes root in you and won't give an inch. You know that loving somebody means learning to love the space between you. It's not enough to love Jeremiah's easy smile or razor wit, his generosity or the steady way he's always been there when you needed him. You've learned to love the way he treats your sister right, the way he always pulls out Anne's chair when you all eat dinner together. The way he laughs at her jokes, even the ones that aren't funny. You love Anne, and you love Jeremiah, and you love the way Anne and Jeremiah love each other. And sometimes you think: this is enough. To have this much love in your life might just be enough.

And you know, as you watch Jeremiah walk up the dusty road toward your house, that love and sacrifice has got to be what carries you through this day. Jeremiah's wearing suspenders, a suit coat slung over his shoulder and a fistful of wildflowers in one hand. He's got the kind of smile on his face that snags at your heart, catches it, jagged at the edges. Hurts, but only just.

"Hey, best man," he says to you, and he hugs you. And for a moment, the space between you doesn't exist. His smile is for _you_. The flowers in his hand, right in this moment, could be for you too.

But then Anne comes out of the house, feet carrying her fast toward Jeremiah, and she jumps into his arms. They laugh as he spins her 'round. She's wearing the sun dress Mom made for her last summer and her hair's all done up. Jeremiah sets her down in the street and hands her the flowers, saying, "It's nothin' fancy," with a small smile, and Anne kisses his cheek.

"Ready?" she asks you both, and you nod and Jeremiah claps his hands together. Nervous energy is coming off the two of them in waves as you all start heading down the road. Toward the small chapel on the hill near the silver mine.

Loving the space between is crucial. You think about your mother, the distance she's cultivated since Dad died. The way she doesn't cry around you any more, and how you've had to learn to love that, too, the way she tries to be strong. You think about letting go, embracing the gaps. Planting flowers there, watching them grow. It's better than the alternative. It's better than losing Jeremiah completely.

You keep a smile on your face as Anne and Jeremiah hold hands at the altar. Your sister glances at you, and looking into her eyes is like walking a tightrope. A balancing act between laughing and crying. And then you bear witness. Witness them say all the things they need to say. You clap and cheer when they kiss. You sign the document when it's handed to you. Dylan Mathis. Best man. Brother, son, heir, oldest friend. It's gotta be enough. Because at least you get to be part of it. You stand in this little chapel near the silver mine and you're there, with the two people you love best. You love your sister, you love her new husband. You love Jeremiah, you love his new wife. You try to love the new space between you now: the expanse of warm air in this church, the motes of dust dancing in the beam of sunlight that comes down through the window. You try to love that dust and that light with everything you have. You try not to think about the rest.

You let go. Let go and hold onto what you can.


End file.
